Improvement in reversible knob-latches



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JOSEPH WHITTINGHAINI, OF PIT'ISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA..

Leners latent No. 100,830, man Mwah 15, 1870.

IMPRVEMENT IN REVERSIBLE KNOB-LATCH:'E IS. r

'The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of thesame.

To all whom it may concern:

Be itknown thatl I, JOSEPH WHITTINGHAM, of Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Locks and I do hereby declare the foltowingto be a full, clear, :and exact description there of, reference being had to the'accompanying drawings making part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a side view of a lock-casepartially illus- My. invention relates to that class of mortise doorlocks known as reversible locks, that is, locks having reversible latch'bolts, so .as to berreadily made applicable toa right orleft-hand door; and

The nature of it consists in combining lugs on the outside of the lock-case with recesses in the inside of the removable face-plate.

Also, in making a lock having a removable faceplate.

'Ilo-enable others skilled in the art to make and use `my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction'and manner'of use. i

The lock-case b being a mortise-lock, has shortlugs o, projecting, one upand one down, as shown, at the corners which come against the face-plate d.

The inner side Yof the removable plate cl has recesses a', sufficiently deep to receive the lugs-wholly or in part.

At suitable points on the inner side ofthe face-plate, so that theymay enter the open end of the case at or near the opposite corners, are lugs o, about as broad as the' aperture of the case, but each one having `on one side a small notch, c', which, whenthe face-plate is in place,

catches on a bead, c, on the inside of thelock-case, whereby such lugs care made to perform the function of hooks.

The parts are so proportioned that they fit snugly together, so that each part will keep in place with con# siderable firmness.

C In the face-plate are holes f f', for the lock and' latch-bolts. i

It is important in door-locks that the face-plate should be firmly attached to the lock-case, as with a inortise-lock there is no way of fastening the lock in the mortise, except by screws passing throughthe holes g in the faceplate. If, as has bee11done,the

Likeletters of reference indicate like parts in each.

face-plate be hinged to one corner oi the 'lock-case,

. the lock-case will be liable to fall back or become loosened from the face-plate after being inserted in the door.

In the case of the devices herein described, the lugs a project outfar enough to rest againstthe edge of the door in a groove or recess cut for the purpose, one above and one below the mortise. The hooks o also 'catching on the beads c aid in holding the lock-case to its place. Also the lugs a entering the recesses a in the face'- plate d, and the hooks' c fitting snugly into the open end of the ease, hold the case so firmly inplace that when the face-plate is screwed to the door, the lockcase cannot move laterally. Hence the connection is practically as secure as if, as was formerly the case, the facelplatewere irremovably fastened to the lockcase and, at the same time, the connection is such that before the lock is attached to the door, the.v faceplate can easily be removed, the latch-bolt be reversed,

and the plate replaced without-trouble. The expense i of hinging is saved, and a better lock produced.

It will be observed that the face-plate described is so made that it may be entirely removed from the lock-case, and this feature, with or without the lugs and hooks, I claim as an important part of my invention.

vIn ttingthelock-case into the docuwhen the case and face-plate are ixedly attached together by riveting, hinging, or otherwise, itrequires considerable skill to lit and setl the case properly in its' mortise, since the workman can judge as to the accuracy of his work only by the accuracy of "the setting of the face-plate. But by my invention, I make the face-plate removable, so that the Workman can fit his lock-case into its mortise so carefully and tightly'tbat it will, in most cases, retain its position without being in any way attached to the face-plate, though thc devices described for that purpose may be used as an additional protection against displacenientand' injury.

I am aware that face-plates have been attached to lock-cases by screws inserted through lugs on the rear of the face-plate and into the lock-case, so that the face-plates .were removable therefrom by taking out the screws, but in such locks this could not be done while the lock-case was in the door, nor would without removing the screws, except by the use of other improvements.

My improvement, as above described, greatly simplies the construction of the lock, facilitates the accurate setting of the case,`andv the reversal of the bolt, without losing anything in the security of the sist its novelty and utility. Hence,

it be possible in such a lock to reverse the latch-bolt attachments, and in such features of construction con- What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure 3. One or more hooks, c, projecting from the inside by Letters Patent, is of the faceplate, entering the `open end of the lock- 1. In combination with a mOrt-iselock case, a. falcecase and engaging catches e, substantially as described.

plate, with connections, such that it may be at- In testimony whereof, I, the said JOSEPH WHIT tacked and entirely detached Without' the necessary TINGHAM, have hereunto set my hand. removal of any separate fastening devices, substani JOSEPH WHITTINGHAM.

tinlly as described.

2T The devices of preceding claim, in combination Witnesses: with lugs a a Onthe lockscase, substantially as de- TROS. B. KEER, scribed. A. S. NICHOLSON. 

